“Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.”

William Shakespeare, “All’s Well That Ends Well“

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Love, as stated in the Christmas cinema classic Love Actually, is everywhere. It’s in our personal lives, it’s marketed to us, we read works about it, we even listen to songs about the damn subject! I don’t need to tell you what love is, but I am gonna railroad ya with some fun facts about some of the songs on this extremely well-thought-out playlist.

Starting off with a bang, we have the 5’5 powerhouse and resident Mean Little Man, Van Morrison, who was apparently hiding from the Boston Mafia when this song was released! The Ronnettes? You mean the huge plot of Phil Spector to tokenize young black women, make money off of them, and then use his predatory nature to get the lead singer to marry him? Yes, but his “wall of sound” erases that in the music world. (He’s currently incarcerated, convicted of murder.)

But now, let’s move on to some happy facts. Yes, I have those too; I’m not just a Debbie Downer. “Ever Fallen in Love” is gay! Yes, GAY! A gay love song in 1978! Pete Shelley wrote it about another man he was living with at the time, and he later came out as bisexual. The first (widely considered) pop punk song is gay! Also, the drums were specifically set to that beat to imitate a heartbeat –– how cute.

Not to mention all of the amazing womxn on this playlist: FKA twigs (goddess), Joni Mitchell (badass), Lucinda Williams (poet), Linda Rondstadt (trailblazer), Empress Of (angel), and Mitski (all of the above). And a special shoutout to Brond from Just Friends, too! #BayAreaAroundTheWorld

Well, that’s all folks. I’ve exhausted the fun fact area of my brain. Just know this playlist is made with… love.

Kisses,

Juliana

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